BHUBANESWAR: In a bid to manage the huge volume of traffic during the ongoing Durga Puja festival, Commissionerate Police on Friday launched operation Tribhuj.
As its name suggests, the operation has merged three systems - 1,000 CCTV cameras of Bhubaneswar Smart City Limited (BSCL), two drones and police personnel equipped with VHF sets who are engaged on the ground, to prevent traffic congestions in the state capital.
Sources said while BSCL has at least 902 CCTV cameras, police have installed over 90 such cameras in the city. As the BSCL control room does not have adequate manpower to monitor all its cameras, police personnel in three shifts have been deployed there on a trial basis.
A maximum of eight police personnel are being engaged in BSCL control room between 5 pm and 12 am when the city witnesses maximum rush of revellers and pandal hoppers. Around 30 to 35 junctions witnessing traffic snarls during the puja have been identified in the city.
On noticing traffic congestion, police personnel in BSCL control room are informing the motorcycle patrolling teams and cops deployed near major pandals in the city. Besides, patrolling teams are using two drones to keep an eye on vehicular movement during the rush hours and accordingly, clearing the traffic.
Additional CP Umashankar Dash said, “There is a huge traffic rush due to Durga Puja but sincere efforts are being made to ensure that citizens do not face any inconvenience. The three systems have been merged to make traffic flow smooth, regulate crowd and immediately respond in case of theft of valuables like gold ornaments or two-wheelers.”
If operation Tribhuj turns out to be successful, it will be enhanced further and implemented on normal days to maintain traffic and ensure law and order in the city, he added.